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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. staff — employees
  5. last — final
  6. mate — a friend
  7. staff — employees
  8. last — to go on
  9. key — for a lock
  10. mate — to breed
  11. band — a ring
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. key — the most important part
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. last — finally
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. mate — a partner
  19. staff — a stick
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. band — a music group
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. key — in music

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com